Pulmonary
Message from Alexander C. White, MD, MS, and Kathleen Petti, CRT
Alexander C. White, MD, MS, serves as the Chief of Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine. Kathleen Petti, CRT, is the Director of Respiratory Services.
Our focus on patients with pulmonary disease is the keystone to Sinai's inpatient care. Patients are admitted to Sinai with a wide variety of pulmonary diagnoses ranging from COPD to lung transplant recovery, giving members of the multi-disciplinary pulmonary team the opportunity to practice a wide scope of pulmonary care.
We are recognized for our weaning program and the successful outcomes our patient achieve: over 55% of patients admitted with a tracheostomy tube on mechanical ventilation are weaned from the ventilator. We also are widely recognized for our expertise in providing state-of-the-art care for patients who require non-invasive ventilation, the management of patients with tracheostomy tubes and in optimal airway management. Our more than 70 bed ventilator capacity makes Sinai the largest pulmonary program in New England.
As member of our pulmonary care team which includes pulmonologists, PAs, nurses, speech therapists and other disciplines, our respiratory therapists plan an integral role in developing and modifying patient care. They find that the challenges of getting long-term patients off the ventilator and working with families to improve the patient's quality of life and getting them home are some of the reasons that make Sinai an exceptional place to work. Therapist driven weaning protocols and BiPAP and CPAP interventions are specialties of Sinai's respiratory therapists, who also enjoy the opportunity of assisting physicians with upper-airway evaluations and learning skills to work with difficult airways.
In addition to inpatient pulmonary care, Sinai's outpatient pulmonary services include a state of the art sleep medicine program in conjunction with Sleep HealthCenters. In Sinai's pulmonary rehabilitation program, our skilled therapists work under the direction of a pulmonary physician to help people better cope with their pulmonary issues. Working in small group classes, therapists help patients optimize their breathing an increase their exercise endurance - leading to a higher quality of life.
There is hardly a greater feeling than helping a patient breathe easier. Our pulmonary team gives patients with little hope a reason to hope again.